


Wings, Tails, and Claws

by frostedroyaltea



Category: Original Work, The Ascendance Trilogy - Jennifer A. Nielsen
Genre: Afterlife, Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Alternate Universe - Merpeople, Alternate Universe - Werecreatures, Alternate Universe - Wings, Angel Wings, Angst, Blood, Blood and Gore, Blood and Injury, Blood and Torture, Darius Eckbert (The Ascendance Trilogy) mentioned, Demons, Imogen (The Ascendance Trilogy) mentioned, Injury, King Eckbert (The Ascendance Trilogy) mentioned, Major Character Injury, Mermaids, Merpeople, Multi, One Shot Collection, Original Character(s), POV Original Character, Past Character Death, Queen Erin (The Ascendance Trilogy) mentioned, Sad, Send prompts, Short Chapters, Short Stories, Torture, Veldergrath (The Ascendance Trilogy) mentioned, Violence, Werewolves, Wingfic, one shots, winged people
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-20
Updated: 2020-03-24
Packaged: 2021-02-28 17:48:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 1,234
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23221243
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/frostedroyaltea/pseuds/frostedroyaltea
Summary: 1. original work2. Ascendance Trilogy3. Ascendance Trilogy
Relationships: Jaron Artolius Eckbert III & Roden & Tobias
Comments: 3
Kudos: 8





	1. one

**Author's Note:**

> warning// torture, violence, character death

She sat on the raised throne at the far end of the room, her wings rising above her back. She stood, light shining through black and white magpie feathers. She wore bronze armour and a sword, serrated on one edge, wicked sharp on the other, hung at her side. She stepped off the raised dais and walked towards me.

I fell back, quivering. Stray brown feathers scattered the floor, more fell from my wings. The two guards grab my arms and yanked me forward. They threw me at the feet of her.

She unsheathed her sword, the sound echoed in the hall making me flinch. “Erebus,” she snarled. She lifted my chin, forced me to face her. Her hand came away bloody. 

“What are you going to do to me,” I gasped. I heaved myself to my feet only to be knocked down again. My head spun, I wheezed, my chest becoming painfully tight. 

“You. Will. Pay.”

“Fine. Kill me.” I forced myself to look her in the eyes. They were golden, narrowed. She frowned, bared her teeth. 

“Oh, I will. But first-” she looked over her shoulder to the far door. “Bring him in!” My stomach clenched. The door opened, the one leading to the dungeons. 

My eyes widened. I stumbled forwards. “NO!” She shoved me back. 

A body, bloody and torn, was thrown beside me. His wings trembled, the few remaining feathers drifting to the ground. Her eyes narrowed. “Both of you will suffer,” she hissed. 

She motioned with her hand. The guards strapped us to the floor, heavy metal chains hung from us, weights were draped across our wings, pinning us to the floor. She motioned again. The guards stepped back. I twisted my head to look behind me, the broad end of the sword struck me, I went down. 

She held her sword out in front of her. Her wings flared out behind her, blocking any light from the windows. Her wings were large, meant for speed and agility. Her claws were wicked, shining darkly. Too dark to see the blood that stained them. 

“Please,” I whisp[ered. “Please. I’ll do anything. Just let. Him. Go.”

She smirked. “Is that so?” She struck out with her sword. He roared in agony, fresh blood flowing from where his wing once was. Tears trailed down his face. 

“Stop!” I yelled, sobbing. “Let him go! What did we do?!”

“Ruined everything I built, I everything I stood for.” She slashed his other wing, slicing through tendon and muscle. It drooped, then collapsed on his back. He whimpered, biting his lip, struggled to get up. The chains tightened across his back, and he buckled. 

“Trying to escape now?” She sliced his throat with her sword, he screamed, then collapsed. His head turned to look at mine, one last message shining in his dimming eyes. 

I blinked at him. “I am so sorry,” I whispered to him. He gave a rattling sob. 

She looked at him, face tightening. “Enough.” One last strike and the light in his eyes dimmed and his scream faded into the air. Tears continued their path down his face. I froze. Gasped weakly.

“No. No. No. NO! You monster!” I rose against the chain, only to be knocked back down with the sword. A cut opened across my chest, where armour once protected vulnerable skin. My blood seeped through my shirt, spreading fast. “You killed him!” I lunged again. The chains tightened, yanking me down and pinning me to the floor. 

She kicked his body away with a look of disgust. Then, she met my eye, Lifted my chin with the tip of her sword. 

“You brought this upon yourself.” She turned the sword in her hand, still grasping the hilt, and brought it upon my head.

I woke up in an empty cell. Stone, the cold seeping into my bones. Chains weighed me down, pinned me to the ground. Every time I shifted the grated against my skin, making thin cuts where my skin met the microscopic teeth. My wings were slashed. They hung down uselessly, and aching. 

I curled in on myself, weeping. Waiting, for the inevitable to arrive.


	2. two

Tobias folded his wings and leaned against the walls. He idly brushed the golden feathers before sighing. “Jaron. You need to stop moping.”

“But I _ miss  _ him.” Jaron’s black wings slumped and he pulled them over his head. “I don’t want him to be  _ gone _ .” 

Those  _ eyes _ . Tobias sighed and pushed off the wall. “Jaron...”

”He was my friend Tobias.” Jason sniffled and attempted to discreetly wipe his eyes with his sleeve. “I can’t stop thinking about what happened.”

Tobias walked over to Jaron and pulled him to his feet. “We’ll find him. You know Mott’s an amazing tracker

“And if we don’t?” Jaron sagged against Tobias. “I can’t lose anyone else not after my parents, Darius, Imogen.”

“What the pirates, what Connor did to them isn’t your fault.”

“It is though?” Jaron turned away from Tobias. “I led Imogen to her death. My family’s death may not be my fault but Imogen’s is in every way. Imogen gave her life for mine Tobias. There’s blood on my hands now.”

“Jaron.” Tobias rested a hand on Jaron’s shoulder before pulling him into a hug. “You couldn’t have stopped it.”

“If I hadn’t given my position to Eric-”

“They just would have killed you and then him.”

Jaron’s head dropped. “Eric almost died too,” he mumbled. “Barely’s escaped with his  _ life  _ Tobias…”

“Oh, Jaron.” Tobias rested his chin on Jaron’s head and hugged him tighter. “Mott will  _ find  _ him.”

There was a knock on the door. Tobias released Jaron and went to the door. He opened it after a beat of hesitation.

Mott stood there, clothes torn and dirtied. Cuts dotted his face and new his eyes were grim. “We found him,” he said. An almost hopeful light flickered in Jaron’s eyes. Mott’s eyes met Jaron’s. Mott released a breath, his shoulders sagged just slightly. “Jaron… Come with me. Tobias, you too.” The hopeful light was gone from Jaron’s eyes as he trailed behind Mott to where his friend lay. Refusing to hope, believe. 


	3. three

First, he was falling. Later, he opened his eyes and found he was standing in a ring of fire. He looked around as the flames were dying down. Tobias and Roden stood beside him. The air was hot, and glowing blue and red. “Hey,” Roden said.

Jaron looked around once more. “I never thought we’d actually end up down here.”

Roden shrugged. Tobias sighed and his shoulders sagged. “What’d you two do? We should be with the saints, with our families.”

There was a weary sigh. A demon walked up to them. “You three aren’t here because of your sins. You’re here because of other people’s sins.” The demon sighed again at the look of their confused faces. “You lot are here to be punishers.” A scroll was thrown at them and they scrambled to grab it. “Here are your assignments.”

“Will we ever be able to see our families? Our friends?”

The demon rubbed its face. “Yes.” It walked away muttering, “Why did I have to get stuck with  _ them _ ?”

“Guess we made a reputation for ourselves,” Jaron said. Tobias lightly smacked his arm. 

“What’s it say?” Roden asked. He crowded Tobias, looking over his shoulder to read the scroll. 

Tobias shoved it at him. “Veldergrath.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> from the Tumblr prompt: As you die, you wake up in a fiery place. You quickly realize you're in hell. You ask the next demon why you are there, as you lived a very good life. "You're not being punished", he says. "You are the punishment."
> 
> \---
> 
> I might add more chapters later

**Author's Note:**

> I don't have many ideas for this so send me prompts and a fandom if you want. : )


End file.
